The present invention relates to a weighted pusher for use on a gravity-fed display shelf, and more particularly to such a weighted pusher having a front plate and a rear leg assembly.
Typically various shelves in a supermarket, grocery store or the like are disposed in a downward and forward orientation so that an entire column of product (i.e., the product train) will slide forwardly and downwardly under the influence of gravity to the front of the shelf (where it is usually blocked by an upstanding ledge or stop). Where the friction of the product train on the shelf floor is too high for such movement of the product train under the influence of gravity alone, a spring-loaded pusher is frequently used to drive the rear of the product train forwardly and downwardly, the spring force enabling the product train to overcome the friction. Such spring-loaded pusher structures are often complex, problematic and not favored in a freezer compartment where the cold temperature may have an adverse effect on the relatively powerful spring which must be used to drive the pusher. Thus, a weight-driven pusher (containing a heavy weight therein to overcome friction) is often used on a tilted gravity-fed tray. However, the conventional weight-driven pusher is not entirely satisfactory in practice.
Unless the front of the main body of the pusher is sufficiently high in upper reach, during loading of product from the shelf front, the rearmost product may tip rearwardly over the top of the pusher when the center of gravity of the rearmost product is higher than the top of the pusher. (Typically the main body of the pusher is relatively low since a high pusher limits the number of shelves that can be stacked one on top of the other in the freezer, thereby wasting valuable space which may not be needed for the particular product.) In the past, this has been prevented, e.g., through the use of a sled wherein the weight-driven pusher was mounted on a sled which also carried on the front thereof an upright one of the products (on a protected ledge in front of the pusher) in such a manner that the effective height of the pusher was equal to the effective height of the one upright product placed on the sled. This meant that the effective pushing force of the sled on the rearmost product of the product train in front of the sled was at least as high as such rearmost product so that the latter could not tip rearwardly over the sled. By way of background, see FIGS. 6 and 7 of Mason U.S. Pat. No. 6,234,328. However, in practice the sled-carried product tended to remain unsold, ignored by potential customers, and forgotten about by store personnel, with the result that it eventually became stale and unsaleable, in effect wasted product.
Further, where the center of gravity of the rearmost product of the product train was higher than the center of gravity of the weight-driven pusher, the rearmost product at the back of a heavy or long product train could exert a resistance or inertia on the front plate at a point above the center of gravity of the pusher and therefore tend to tip the pusher over rearwardly so that it landed on its back and could no longer perform its function. In the past, this has been prevented by the provision of a fixedly-mounted leg which extended rearwardly from the rear of the pusher and acted to stabilize the pusher against rearward tipping over. In effect, the leg acted as a rearwardly extending outrigger and extended the effective length of the base of the pusher to eliminate accidental rearward tipping thereof. However, the presence of the leg extending rearwardly out of the pusher increased the footprint of the pusher so that it occupied more valuable shelf space, with the result that there could be fewer products in the product train.
Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a weight-driven pusher which in a preferred embodiment uses no sled (and thus does not carry any product on a sled).
Another object to provide such a weight-driven pusher which in a preferred embodiment has a small footprint on the display shelf and does not have a rearwardly extending leg occupying valuable shelf space when the shelf is being loaded with a product train (so that the length of the product train may be maximized).
A further object is to provide such a weight-driven pusher which in a preferred embodiment has neither a sled nor a permanent rearwardly extending leg.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide such a weight-driven pusher which in a preferred embodiment is suitable for use in a display shelf in a freezer.
It is another object to provide such a weight-drive pusher which in a preferred embodiment is simple and economical to manufacture, use and maintain.